Ten Year
by MD14
Summary: "Ten year reunion McNally, no guys who dumped you that you need to show up?" He had laughed. - Andy/Sam future fic (Not long after she gets back from Dakota - probably a few months) What happens when it's time to confront who they used to be? Now a two-shot.
1. Ten

Look, I don't want to go okay? Just drop it." Andy sighs one last time, glaring pointedly at Sam.

He's got the letter in his left hand, and he's sitting on her couch, beer in his right. She made the mistake of leaving her mail open on the kitchen counter again. Last time he got his hands on some open mail that caught his eye, it was the results from her last blood test that said she had high levels of hCG. She wound up having to explain that it was a hormone common in pregnant women (which she was not) and they wound up discussing what if scenarios until the early hours of the morning.

Thankfully, this would be less in depth (she hoped), and it really didn't matter, but Sam would not let it go.

("Ten year reunion McNally, no guys who dumped you that you need to show up?" He had laughed.)

"Andy, that's fine, it just seems like one of those things you would be into." He smirks, tossing the paper on the coffee table, and leaning forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "You don't wanna go, we don't have to go."

"We?" Andy asks, wildly amused, glancing over her shoulder. "Oh honey," She begins, condescendingly, "If I were going, _you_ would _not_ be coming."

She grabs the rest of the coffee tables clutter (more mail, takeout menus, TV guide), while he looks on at her, confused, and slightly offended.

"Oh and why is that McNally? Few embarrassing stories you don't want me to hear?" He hopes to god that's it, and not that there's some ex boyfriend she's hoping to reconnect with. He knows that's farfetched, but, they've never really gone that far back into her past yet...

She snorts at him and continues making her way to the kitchen to sort her junk out on the kitchen counter, out of his view. They've only been home from shift thirty minutes, and it's a miracle they were done at the same time any more. Cases were always finding their way to him right before quitting time. Life of a detective, he guesses.

"Seriously McNally, I'll bet you were one knobby kneed band geek or something eh?" He prods, not letting it go just yet. With determination in mind, he pushes himself off the bench and makes his way into her kitchen, and sets his beer bottle down beside her, and traps her between his arms. His palms rest against the granite, and she leans her back into him, continuing the task at hand.

She unconsciously tilts her head to the side, and lets him have at her neck, as long as they stop talking about the reunion. She just really doesn't want to go. At all. No, she wasn't a nerd... not by a long shot. But she also wasn't someone she was proud of.

The hair dying phase really got out of hand, and her choice in company wasn't the wisest (anyone who looked like they belonged in a band. This was also back when she liked Nickelback...). When she did finally turn it around, she was into varsity track, basketball, soccer. Whatever could keep her on the straight and narrow, Tommy's words, not hers. But, varsity parties, well, Tommy really didn't stand a chance.

She wasn't really an "at risk" youth anymore (she never really was) but the varsity jocks? They were, _interested_ in Andy, for sure. Towards the end of her high school days she'd really begun to fill out, and she attracted more than one girls boyfriend. Andy and the other girls didn't hit it off. Aside from certain team mates, Andy spent most of her time with the guys, which only made things worse. And Andy was not excited to drag Sam into an old gym full of the boys, and have to explain her poor choices. If she could keep her past separate, she would.

"Common. Blast to the past. Couldn't be that bad." He murmurs between sloppy kisses near her ear.

She turns in this little, cage, he's created, frustrated now, actually letting his persistence piss her off.

"Why won't you let this go?"

He shrugs and lets his look drop to the floor. A deep breath, and his eyes are back to hers, like he's gearing up for a speech.

"I just... I want to know everything." He puts it simply, but she wants more. Of course she does, it's McNally. "I told you about everything, right? And that was really hard for me. Reliving that shit with my dad, and Sarah. I know you are vague about your teens for a reason. They were tough. Puberty without a mom. I get that Andy. I didn't have my dad either."

Andy's expression has softened significantly at his bluntness. They've always been good at getting the other to do what they want, but this time she needed to understand why, and he was communicating. He'd gotten so much better at it, and she was so grateful.

"But, I want to know. Good, bad, ugly. All of it."

He's more than shocked by her reaction, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him like they were about to die. If he'd known this was what opening up was going to do... well, he would've started a long time ago. Before all the damage had been done.

"Is that a yes?" He asks breathlessly once she's kissed her lips chapped.

"That's a yes." She says, but with a but coming. He can always tell. "But, you need to really change your assumptions of what I was like."

His arms are still around her waist, and she's leaning far enough back, like she's trying to get away, but really she just needs to see his whole face right now.

His eyebrow goes up, suspiciously, and it's time for her to explain, communicate.

Before he knows it, she's running to her bedroom, and once he hears her drop something really heavy onto the floor, he follows. She's rummaging around in her closet for something on the top shelf, stretched from her toes to her arms high above her head, and Sam leans in the doorway and waits for the big reveal. She pulls a stack of books (yearbooks he guesses) down with her, and turns slowly toward him, and motions toward the bed.

He gets in on his side, back up against the head board, and she butterflies his legs open, and settles herself between them, back up against his chest. His legs move down to bracket hers, and waits for her to finish squiggling around, getting comfy.

"Ready?" She asks, like it's a bed time story or something. He just nods and kisses her temple, ready for a trip down memory lane.

* * *

"Jesus." He breathes, taking in her senior portrait once they get there. She looks a lot like she does now. Her features were a little softer, and there was a little more baby fat in her cheeks, but ultimately the same. "Very different from the purple streaks."

Andy giggles, not realizing how fun this would be. Some of these people she hasn't even bothered to think about in the last ten years, let alone miss them. But going through the signatures in the back of her book, it seems like it wasn't that long ago.

"Yeah, just a bit." She sighs.

"So, not a lot of girlfriends?" He asks, again.

"Nope, maybe four, but even then, the guys were closer." She confirms, knowing that he was having a tough time realizing these guys managed to be 'just friends' with a girl as beautiful as she was... is.

"And they were...?"

"Jonathan, Ross, and Wyatt." She says, pointing them out in a picture of the three of them at some track meet. Arms swung around each other, Andy's head thrown back in laughter. "I met them at track and field tryouts, and they suggested I do short distance, and relays. They helped me get better, and we all got really close."

It bothers Sam for some reason. Sure, they were basically just kids, and they were happy together, but somewhere in the back of his mind, some kind of insecurity was bullying his subconscious. They'd really worked hard to get here, and they learned to trust one another again. Trust wasn't the issue though. It was the fact that he'd finally figured out the phrase "Love is giving someone the power to destroy you, and trusting them not to." And right now, he's putting a whole lot of trust in her, when he doesn't know a whole lot about this situation.

He runs his hands up and down her sides, not letting on that he was affected by her past, and let her stay relaxed in their embrace. She drops her head back against his shoulder, and twists her neck so she's staring up at him.

"And they never... You didn't date any of them?" He says with disbelief. True, he'd never figured out platonic friendships with women until adulthood (late adulthood) but it seemed unrealistic.

"I can assure you they were pretty happy with their girlfriends. Believe me, it would've made my day if John _had_ looked my way," Sam's hands stop for a millisecond, before he can block that image from his brain, "but I was always sweaty and in my track gear. We didn't used to have those little spandex shorts the girls have got now."

He's relieved to hear that, until-

"Besides, I had a thing for lacrosse players."

* * *

The books are now tossed to the foot of her bed, and long forgotten, and they've just been swamping stories about firsts, and awkward rites of passage. Worse parent interruption and embarrassment. Sam asks Andy if Tommy ever had to threaten a guy with his gun, and surprisingly, he brought it with him when he met Andy on the front porch after first dates.

He revealed that it was a girl from high school that had made Sam wary of women, and kept them at arm's length. He'd been, what is now coined as friend zoned.

He'd been bookish most of his childhood, used to really enjoy 'Moby Dick', and only really learned how to be cool from watching TV. Eventually he got good at his whole apathetic charade that even he started to buy it. Bought himself a leather jacket, learned to love cars and bikes. Traded in his classic novels for car magazines, and took up shop, dropped English Lit.

And when he finally had the courage to ask Carly Thompson out, get himself a real shot with her, she was too busy bouncing around, announcing that some beef cake asked her to go 'steady'.

"God I hate that word. No one went around giving letterman jackets to their girlfriends. Sounds like there should be an exchange of promise rings." Sam talks about her with such bitterness that Andy's found herself laughing at every little story he brings up. And God he's so jealous. Jealous that she's not at all jealous. She _is_ the younger one in this relationship. Probably knows she's got a little more drive than a near forty year old soccer mom (Sam assumes). And again, jealous.

"Well now you're going steady with me. And I never really liked letterman jackets."

"No?" He asks, knowing that she's playing some cute game.

"Nope, I lied. Hated the lacrosse team. Horny jerks. I liked the rebels in leather. With a taste for good books."

Sam smiles broadly into her hair, laughing so low he's not sure she can hear. Seriously this girl-

"But no rings." She remarks suddenly, stiffening a bit. "Just... not yet."

His girl.

A/N: I'm really trying to work on getting better at one-shots, so please, review. Good, bad, I wanna know. Just please make it constructive :)


	2. Twenty

A/N: Decided it would work as a two part-er. Not what you asked for, but hopefully you'll be satisfied. Andy's outfit on polyvore /cgi/set?id=75300114

* * *

"Andy, five minute warning!" Sam bellowed up the stairs from the door. He could hear her running frantically from the closet to the bathroom a few minutes ago and hope her makeup is all that's left, she never wears much.

Sam may have made the worst mistake he'd made in a while when he asked Andy to go to her reunion. They went, and things were surprisingly fine. Her old teammates came and chatted, genuinely interested in her life. Her close friends, "the guys", were at their table, and thankfully they were all taken (though Sam did keep a careful eye on Josh).

But then of course, karma had to come and bite him in the ass. Andy managed to get her hands on his twentieth reunion invite, almost a year later, before the envelopes even open. It's got a fucking sticker on it saying what it is. He tries to tell her it's a criminal offence to open other peoples mail...

_"I'm serious Andy, I'll cuff you right now!" He'd bellowed when she dashed out of his grasp._

_"Promise?"_

So then when he said he wasn't going, Andy got the pleasure of turning his words against him.

_"I wanna know everything." She'd mocked, sticking her tongue out at him. She was being pinned down to the living room floor, Sam straddled over top of her, both wrists in one hand, ridiculous smiles on both of their faces. The goal wasn't even grabbing the envelope anymore, it was just for fun. "The good. The bad. The ugly." She choked out between Sam's assault of tickling her ribs._

She'd gotten a little fed up when he refused to budge, and eventually he knew that he had to do this for her, the way she'd done for him.

She'd been made for over an hour, and it was obvious to him that she wasn't trying to be. That was something else that had much improved, she no longer fought like a child.

She answered all of his questions, kept conversation during dinner, but it was under her skin that he was denying her this. More so than she did him. For her she was merely trying to forget who that version of her was. But for him, it was more the act of going out and making small talk with a room full of people he hardly cared about the first time around.

But he knows that he'd enjoyed seeing some of his old friends again. Seeing where they ended up. And he knows a lot of them are going. He's been getting the chain emails, and Christmas letters with pictures of their kids. For years he had thought he was somehow lucky to have avoided the mess of relationships and the burden of kids. Used to think they weren't the same guys they used to be, they used to think the same way he did.

He understood now. It wasn't a burden or a mess. It was some kind of blessing. He was grateful that he finally understood what it was like to love unconditionally... to be loved unconditionally.

She was washing the dishes when he'd come to his decision. Kissed her neck and said he was sorry, that they'd go. Once he said it, she felt guilty, like she was forcing him. Tried to shake it off, tell him it's okay, it doesn't matter.

_"It's okay, I shouldn't have pushed so hard." She whispered, continuing with the chore at hand. He reached around her and placed his hands in the warm water over hers, and pulled them out._

_"No, I'm glad you did. Andy, I promise you I want to. It'd be nice for you to meet some of my old friends." He whispered back. She nodded, and tried to free her hands, to continue with the dishes, but Sam didn't relinquish his grip. "Leave it."_

"Times up McNally! I'm leaving whether you're ready or not." He hollered again, hearing her shoes scuff the floors. He cringed, but refrained from scolding her for it. His fault she was rushing... His fault they got side tracked after work...

"I'm coming!" She yelled, as she turned at the top of the stairs. He took her in from foot to head as she descended.

She looked incredibly grown up, as weird as that sounds. He was used to her in sweats or jeans, the odd sun dress in the summer. A couple of nice dresses for parties and formal dinners. But tonight, tonight she was embodying something else entirely.

She's wearing these nude flats (which he appreciates, knowing she'll fit right under his arm), a beautiful coral dress she wore to Gail and Nicks wedding (the one he had so much fun taking off), and has the earrings he bought her for her birthday on. The perfect ensemble and representation of different ways she is his. It's all for him.

"I thought we were in some kind of rush." She mumbles right before planting a soft kiss on his lips. She's just teasing him, but he still pulls her tight up against him with a growl that she knows means 'don't taunt me right not.'

"Just get your coat." He murmurs, searching out for one last kiss.

* * *

When they've pulled up outside of the Parkdale Collegiate Institute, Sam regrets bringing her.

"A Collegiate Institute? Why the hell would they call a school that, I'd be terrified to go." She laughs, studying the giant brick school.

Sam just rolls his eyes, and puts a hand on the small of her back, ready to guide her in. Andy's high school had been a little bigger, a little more modern, and she wore the Lancer black, green and gold with pride. Basically ran through her veins in her senior year, or at least that's how Wyatt put it.

Sam wasn't exactly, _involved_ when he was in school. Never joined a team, never joined a club. But to the teachers who had him he was a hard working kid. He didn't always get the results, but they knew about what he went through to do the best he could. Some of his teachers would pay him to tune up their cars, do oil changes, make sure everything was running alright.

To a lot of that place, he never existed.

He approaches a name tag table with a perky blond (ex-cheerleader, he remembers) excitedly telling them about their table, and having Andy make her own tag. It's quite organized really, and Sam's thankful for the name tags. No awkward forgetful occurrences.

Andy was teaching him techniques the whole ride over.

_"You take a sip of your drink as someone approaches, and I introduce myself as your date, and they introduce themselves. It's a fool proof system."_

_"And if other people have the same plan?"_

_She just shrugged her shoulders._

And when the exit the large and cold foyer, and enter the gym, they're hit with the warmth of the guests who have been dancing and circulating rather than sitting and eating quietly the way Sam had hoped. Sam estimates that there are roughly 25 tables, seating 10 people, but of course that includes their plus ones. So really how many of the 175 people is he expected to remember?

The answer is a lot more than he expected, and what's more than that, is how many people remember him. Twice while Andy's been talking to his old buddy Travis has a women come up and tell him how attracted they were to him in high school. And it's not until Carly Thompsons arrival is announced to him by his other friend Curtis, that he even notices a hint of jealousy from his girlfriend.

Not long after her reunion did they decide to move in together, and things had been going really well. And they were more serious than he ever thought he was capable of being. To him it was like they were already married, just without the papers. And he planned on getting some of those real soon. But in all that time since the night on her bed when he told her about Carly Thompson, she's never been outright with jealousy. He'd started paying attention after that. When women approached him in the grocery store, or witnesses (even criminals) at the station laid a light hand on his arm, feeling out his bicep, she was cool as a cucumber and it was beginning to drive him nuts.

So when he basically feels her stiffen on his arm, and her hand curl around his bicep, he feels this odd sense of pride. Like maybe he's hers as much as she's his. The diminishes immediately when he realizes that Andy is going to be analyzing any interactions between the two. And they _did_ used to be friends, whether Sam had other motives or not, he didn't want to ignore her.

"Sam Swarek." A familiar calls to him a little sooner than he'd hoped. Before turning around to great it, he slips his hand down to Andy's, and grips it tight.

"Carly," He responds, taking a good look at who she became. She looked the same, just older. She was probably a mother, her hips were a little bigger now, and she was softer looking, like she probably gave up her aerobics after kids...

"Good to see you Sammy. Didn't think you'd come." She said, going in for a hug. He, not without regret, lets go of Andy's hand to give Carly a brief hug.

It lasts less than five seconds, thank god, but as she releases him, she runs her hands down his arms to hold his hands in hers for a moment, and he notices she's not wearing a ring.

Divorced.

Now he's worried. He'd been counting on her commitment to someone else to keep Andy from chewing her head off, but he just found out he'd be working double time. For the first time he's wishing he had her sign a marriage license before they left the house, warn Carly off with _his_ marriage...

"Carly, this is my girlfriend, Andy." He says, deciding that now's the time to fit her under his arm, pull her close, make sure she knows that she's ruined him for other women. "Andy, Carly."

Carly was never a petty person, and that didn't seem to have changed. Maybe the hug was totally innocent. Maybe he was over thinking things.

"Oh my god, someone tied Sam down. Hi, it's so nice to meet you. Thought I'd never see the day." She gushes sincerely. Sam sneaks a look at Andy, make sure she's being her nice self.

"I wasn't sure I would either." Andy smiles, giving him a little poke in the side. A hard little poke in the side. To any stranger Andy's being perfectly nice, her usual self, good thing Sam knows better. He runs the hand on the arm that's draped over her shoulders up and down, comforting as best he can at the moment.

"That sounds like Sammy! Anyways, I should get back to my girlfriend, she was supposed to be grabbing me a drink-"

Sam stops listening the minute he hears her say girlfriend, and feels relief flood through him, and then confusion. In all his years he never would've guessed that Carly was gay, but back when he knew her, she may not have known. Andy hand, that has been wrapped around his waist and under his sports jacket, rubs up and down his ribs soothingly, grasping that this would probably shock him.

"Well it was nice meeting you Carly." Andy smiles brightly, for real this time.

All of a sudden Sam has a new fear, the fact that Carly might be attracted to his girlfriend...

* * *

Andy actually doesn't bring it up until they're driving home, and Sam's got this extremely serious expression on his face, like maybe he's been analyzing all his past encounters with her that may have tipped him off.

She doesn't mean for her laugh to be heard, and he's not quite positive he heard it at first, but when he glances over at her, she's got a hand slapped over her mouth and her body is shaking to try and keep quiet.

"I'm sorry." She giggles, trying to calm herself down.

"Oh grow up McNally."

"You should've seen your face," She gasps, still trying to get a hold of herself. Sam rolls his eyes and speeds up their journey home, wanting to just go to bed and forget that the reunion never happened.

Truthfully, he _was_ glad he went. He was happy to meet his old friends wives, having been UC so much when he was starting out as a cop, he'd actually been invited to and missed a couple of them. And it was worth it for them to have met Andy, to see her laughing with them, really getting along, making the effort to be invested in his past.

"Shut up." He grumbles, pulling into the drive way because her laughter failed to stop completely.

"Poor baby," She mocks, jutting out her bottom lip in a pout. "Are you upset because your old girlfriend is a lesbian?"

"She was never my-" He stops abruptly, because he realizes he's only fueling her laughter. "No, I'm upset because my current girlfriend is a nut job."

Andy just smiles, no more mocking or laughter. She moves her hand to his knee and squeezes lightly.

"Well I'm thrilled." She says, before opening her door and heading for the house.


End file.
